Cardiovascular Surgery

The Department of Cardiovascular Surgery at China-Japan Friendship Hospital was established in 1984. Its current department head is Director Ye Zhidong. In the early years after its establishment, under the leadership of its first department director, Professor Zhi Qihua, the department primarily performed surgical treatment for adult valvular heart disease and congenital heart disease. In the 1980s, Director Wang Fenglin was the first in China to perform coronary artery bypass grafting under cardiopulmonary bypass, and in the 1990s the department was the first in China to perform off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (on a beating heart). In the late 1990s, the department’s third director, Vice President Liu Peng, while continuing to expand the original field of cardiac surgery, also began providing diagnosis and treatment for peripheral vascular diseases, introduced advanced minimally invasive techniques from abroad to treat lower-extremity varicose veins, and performed “carotid endarterectomy” to treat carotid artery stenosis and prevent ischemic stroke. The department also seamlessly integrated cardiac and vascular surgery, performing concomitant “coronary artery bypass grafting” and “internal carotid endarterectomy” procedures. In December 2016 (12/2016), it successfully performed “pulmonary artery thromboendarterectomy” (PEA) to treat chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension; the number of procedures has now exceeded 100, with both quality and volume leading nationally. Beginning in 2019, Director Ye Zhidong introduced the most advanced minimally invasive treatment for aortic valve disease (TAVR), and in early 2020 performed TIPS interventions for patients with cirrhotic portal hypertension, filling gaps in these diagnostic and treatment technologies at China-Japan Friendship Hospital. At the same time, Director Ye Zhidong has brought the minimally invasive techniques of vascular surgery to their fullest potential, performing minimally invasive treatment for many complex diseases of the thoracic aorta, abdominal aorta, and supra-aortic branch arteries, among others. The department director is Ye Zhidong, the deputy department director is Zhen Yanan, and the head nurse is Zhou Jin. There are 2 chief physicians, 2 associate chief physicians, 7 attending physicians, 2 resident physicians, 1 technician, 1 associate research fellow, 17 nurses, and 1 department secretary. All physicians in the department have postgraduate-level or higher educational qualifications.

Outpatient and inpatient facilities:

Outpatient services are available Monday through Friday, with a Specialty Clinic for Hemangiomas and Vascular Malformations (Tuesday mornings), a Specialty Clinic for Dialysis Vascular Access (Tuesday afternoons), and a Specialty Clinic for Minimally Invasive Treatment of Lower-Extremity Varicose Veins (Tuesday mornings). An Expert Clinic is available on Tuesday mornings and Friday mornings. The inpatient unit has 40 beds in total, including 2 intensive care beds, and is equipped with a Cardiovascular Center research laboratory.

Diagnostic and treatment equipment:

The department is equipped with an advanced hybrid operating room (DSA angiography system) capable of performing complex cardiac and vascular operations; it is also equipped with ultrasound examination equipment, IABP, ECMO, and other equipment.

Departmental diagnostic and treatment specialties:

The department’s annual surgical volume is nearly 1800 cases, encompassing the major procedures in cardiac surgery as well as all vascular surgical procedures and minimally invasive interventional treatments involving arteries, veins, vascular malformations, dialysis access, interventional embolization, and more:

1. Coronary artery surgery: Performs off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting, with particular expertise in concomitant carotid endarterectomy during coronary artery bypass grafting.

2. Surgical and interventional treatment of carotid artery stenosis: Carotid endarterectomy and carotid artery stent implantation are used to treat severe carotid artery stenosis and some chronic carotid artery occlusions and prevent cerebral infarction.

3. Pulmonary artery thromboendarterectomy: In collaboration with the departments of respiratory medicine, anesthesiology, radiology, and others, the department established the China-Japan Friendship Hospital Pulmonary Embolism and Pulmonary Vascular Disease Team through multidisciplinary collaboration to treat chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension.

4. TIPS procedure: Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) is a minimally invasive method of reducing portal venous pressure. It is used to treat a series of serious complications caused by portal hypertension, such as bleeding from ruptured esophageal and gastric fundal varices, refractory hydrothorax and ascites, and other conditions; it can also treat Budd-Chiari syndrome and hepatic sinusoidal obstruction syndrome, among others.

5. Valve replacement and congenital heart disease surgery: Performs aortic and mitral valve replacement, as well as transfemoral/transapical minimally invasive aortic valve implantation (TAVR), to treat aortic stenosis and insufficiency. It also performs surgical treatment for various common congenital heart diseases.

6. Surgery and minimally invasive treatment of aortic diseases: Treats various thoracic and abdominal aortic aneurysms, aortic dissection, aortic ulcers, and intramural hematomas, including ascending aortic root replacement, total arch replacement, and stent placement for thoracic and abdominal aortic aneurysms.

7. Comprehensive treatment of hemangiomas and vascular malformations: The department has developed a comprehensive treatment approach featuring electrochemical therapy combined with interventional embolization and local drug injections to treat various vascular malformations, such as venous malformations, arterial malformations, lymphatic malformations, arteriovenous fistulas, and capillary malformations.

8. Comprehensive treatment of peripheral vascular diseases: Uses various interventional, surgical, hybrid, and other treatment modalities to comprehensively treat peripheral vascular diseases, with particular emphasis on minimally invasive and surgical treatment of lower-extremity arteriosclerotic occlusive disease, diabetic foot, subclavian artery occlusion, vertebral artery stenosis, and renal artery stenosis.

9. Surgery for great saphenous vein varicosities: Uses various combined minimally invasive treatment methods, including laser, radiofrequency, stripping, TriVex powered phlebectomy, and sclerotherapy.

10. Creation and maintenance of dialysis vascular access for patients with uremia: Establishes autogenous vascular access, vascular access using grafts, and special complex dialysis access.

11. Performs interventional embolization to treat various types of bleeding and hemoptysis.

Current specialized clinics:

Specialty Clinic for Hemangiomas and Vascular Malformations (Tuesday mornings: Dr. Fan Xueqiang)

Specialty Clinic for Dialysis Vascular Access (Tuesday afternoons: Dr. Yang Yuguang)

Specialty Clinic for Minimally Invasive Treatment of Lower-Extremity Varicose Veins (Tuesday mornings: Dr. Chen Jie)

Departmental research achievements:

The department has successively collaborated with the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in the United States, the University of Düsseldorf in Germany, Fuwai Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, and Beijing Anzhen Hospital, conducting a series of studies on the basic and clinical prevention and treatment of arteriosclerotic diseases. It has obtained 6 National Natural Science Foundation of China projects, 1 Ministry of Science and Technology “863” project, 1 National Science and Technology Support Program project, 1 special international cooperation project of the Ministry of Science and Technology, and more than 20 other research projects, including Beijing Natural Science Foundation projects and collaborative projects with national key laboratories. Research funding totals nearly RMB 10 million (1000 ten-thousand yuan). The department has published more than 30 SCI papers and over 130 articles in domestic core journals, authored 5 monographs, contributed to 15 monographs, and obtained 2 patents.

Departmental teaching:

The department undertakes clinical teaching for Peking Union Medical College and Peking University Health Science Center. As a teaching hospital of Peking University Health Science Center, China Medical University, and Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, China-Japan Friendship Hospital undertakes teaching for undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students, as well as resident physician training. The department is among the first batch of national peripheral vascular intervention training bases and has accepted more than 200 physicians for advanced training to date.

Departmental honors:

In 2016, the department was awarded “Advanced Collective of China-Japan Friendship Hospital.”

Other important matters:

Successfully and on schedule completed counterpart-support work in Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Jinzhai, and other areas. Successfully completed the medical support tasks for the prevention and control of “SARS” and “COVID-19.”

Location within the hospital:

The department’s outpatient clinic is located on the 2nd floor of Outpatient Building B (the Specialty Clinic for Vascular Malformations is located on the 3rd floor); the inpatient ward is located on the 13th floor of Inpatient Building A.

Department telephone numbers: Outpatient clinic: 010-84205083, ward: 010-84205256, nurses' station: 010-84205091 Department consultation line: 010-84206251.